the film “Beyond the Silences”, now showing in cinemas

“Par-delà les silences”, the film by Franche-Comté director François Royet was released in 2022. Since then, the work has followed an unexpected path, carried by the public. The film is released on August 28 in several theaters in France.

Charles Belle and his monumental paintings, his giant flowers with bright colors. His canvases that capture nature in every season. The painter based in Tallenay near Besançon in the Doubs is now 68 years old. Originally from a rural background, Charles Belle, in 40 years of career, has produced nearly 10,000 paintings and more than 20,000 drawings. The titles of his works are always imbued with poetry and mystery.

Well known to the people of Comtois, the man continues to paint. In his studio most of the time, but also outside, such as at the top of Mont d’Or at an altitude of 1,400 metres. Director François Royet followed the artist’s creative stages for 16 years, a face-to-face in colour, a face-to-face in silence in front of the paintings that come to life under the painter’s creative energy.

The film, which came out at the time of the major retrospective dedicated to the painter, has won over the public over the days and months. It was screened for a month at the Victor Hugo cinema in Besançon. The film was screened last April at the Louvre as part of the International Days of Films on Art. It can currently be seen in Paris at the Saint-André des Arts cinema, an art-house cinema. 14 screenings are planned.

“Par-Delà les silences” is not strictly speaking a portrait of Charles Belle, even if we follow him during these sixteen years of creation. For me, it is the culmination of a very long work that questions the processes of creation, the commitment and constancy that it requires, the place that art takes in the life of a human being.” summarizes Francois Royet.

Charles Belle was surprised by the success of the 82-minute film, which was made without any communication or distribution, and the meetings with the public fascinated to see a decade of creation take shape on the big screen. “It’s really a fascinating life experience” Charles Belle confides to our journalist Catherine Schulbaum. “A moment of truth in cinema” according to him. “The quality of the images, the choice, the relevance of the editing, it creates something real that people savor. There are almost no words in this film, only images and people are really passionate for an hour” assures the painter from Franche-Comté.

-At the Victor-Hugo cinemas in Besançon and Montbéliard Coliseum from this Wednesday, August 28
-At the L’Olympia cinema in Pontarlier, September 20, at 8:30 p.m.